Letter to the Editor: American Dream, American Nightmare

To the editor:

Millions of Americans, including many in my hometown, will vote for Donald J. Trump in November. Several million will do so because they believe Trump has the answers to their material problems, and because they have valid grievances with the American political system. Regardless of whether those reasons are based in reality, I consider it unfair to condemn all Trump supporters to the so-called basket of deplorables. However, I do consider it fair to condemn certain justifications for supporting Donald Trump. Namely, I write to condemn wholeheartedly a reason put forward in the recently published op-ed, "In Defense of Donald Trump." The author of this article claims that Trump "actively gathers support by reawakening a sense of pride in the identity each of us has as an American," and that Trump's policies "strike a deep and patriotic chord with their connotation of national strength." Most troublingly, the author suggests that Trump's campaign "does not signify a lack of compassion for foreigners," but rather fights to prevent a "socialistic infringement on the American Dream."

To the author of this article, and to those who agree with it, I pose one simple question: where do you find the audacity to dream on behalf of your compatriots?

The author invokes the founding myth when defining such malleable topics as national identity, patriotism, and the American Dream. But the American Dream is intentionally difficult to define because it is a set of aspirations that vary from person to person. Propped up by a near-irrelevant Patrick Henry quote, the author stains the myth of the American Dream with toxic notions of white nationalism and global domination. By arguing that Donald Trump inspires patriotism and pride in American identity, the author implies that Trump's dissenters are un-American. Their national pride is invalid, and they don't want America to be "great." Further, the author implicitly links American nationalism to white nationalism, and therefore to the ideology of white supremacy. The author brushes aside Trump's xenophobia, which is dwarfed by the greater goal of making America "great." Minorities and dissenters are not enemies to be vanquished on the path to everlasting glory; they are key to our national identity.

As long as we share an American mythos, it must be used for good. I caution Trump apologists against venturing down the well-trodden and dark path of fervent nationalism. As current struggles for civil rights demonstrate, our history trails only so far behind us. We must recognize and indeed treasure the idea that not all Americans want the same thing for their country and for their life. We must recognize that these myths are malleable for a reason: they can be and have been summoned in support of unjustified wars, imperialistic geopolitical schemes, and violence against minorities here at home.

And above all, we must recognize that one person's American Dream is another's waking nightmare.

Daniel J. Kenny '18 is a Government concentrator living in Winthrop House.